On Saturday 18th July 2026, I went to see David Byrne at the Piece Hall. It was my first time seeing him. Most people will remember him as the front man of the band Talking Heads, who were prominent in the music world during the late seventies through to the mid-eighties.
Byrne has somewhat of a reputation for being a controversial and at times divisive character, especially when it came to his relationships with his former bandmates.
I was intrigued as to how he would come across on stage. I attended the concert with my old schoolmate Ian; he had seen Byrne on several previous occasions and had suggested I would be seeing a mix of solo material alongside his Talking Heads material. He told me to expect something a little different to what I had previously experienced. As it turned out, this was very much the case, in a positive way I must add.
Ian loaned me a copy of the latest Byrne album “Who is the Sky?” to have a listen to in preparation for the gig. As it turned out, he performed three tracks from it including “Everybody Laughs” which was probably my favourite track from the album.
The most striking aspect of the show was, in my opinion, that it was more like a musical or theatre show. The performance started with a blank canvas or rather, an empty stage. There were thirteen performers, including Byrne himself, who all either wore their instruments about their body or were dancers who were miked up. One other element I enjoyed, and I cannot remember which song this happened during, was when the backdrop showed the location of each performer on the stage like it would on a map or using coordinates with their names attached to their position. This seemed both sophisticated and also more personal in that you felt you learnt a little more about each person on the stage as they were introduced in a less orthodox way than you would normally see.
As for Byrne himself, he seemed to be very much enjoying himself and at peace with himself based on what I had previously read and heard about him.
I was a big fan on Talking Heads during the eighties so it was fantastic to see songs such as “Psycho Killer” and “Slippery People” which I had been used to hearing on a regular basis in nightclubs, way back when, being performed in a totally different and somewhat artistic manner. I really enjoyed hearing those tracks alongside other big hits such as “And She Was”, “Once in a Lifetime” and “Burning Down the House” which was an excellent way to close out the show. “Road to Nowhere” was the only well-known Talking Heads song not included here.
I would say, in terms of the show itself, this was the best one so far during 2026. The actual music was very good but it was more about the way it was performed.
I would rate the show as four and a half out of five stars.
